Global Sea Ice Extent

Wilma Aftermath

By FatalWishes, on October 25th, 2005 at 01:10:03pmClimatePatrol.comIndianapolis, IN

Wilma Leaves 6M Without Power in Florida

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WESTON, Fla. (AP) - Beginning an agonizing, all-too-familiar process, Floridians lined up for generators, chain saws and other clean-up supplies only hours after Hurricane Wilma cut a costly, deadly swath across the peninsula.

The storm slammed across the state in about seven hours Monday, causing billions in insured damage and leaving 6 million people without electricity. Wilma was blamed for at least six and possibly as many as eight deaths statewide.

8 comments to Wilma Aftermath

Hurricane Wilma is long gone, but those it left stranded on Mexico’s Caribbean coast are tired, fed up and ready to go home after spending the better part of a week in foul-smelling shelters.

President Vicente Fox said getting the tourists home _ and then getting them back again by the start of tourism’s high season in December _ was one of Mexico’s highest national priorities, given that Cancun attracts so many tourist dollars.

On Monday, buses began ferrying hundreds of tourists out of Cancun to Merida, about 170 miles to the west, where they may be able to wrangle homebound flights.

KEY WEST, Fla. — This island city is considered the dividing point between the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico. But for a few hours in the middle of the night, the two seas converged in the streets here as Hurricane Wilma gave many residents a scare as few other storms have done.

The water rose quickly and to unexpected heights, rapidly reaching the tops of cars in some low-lying areas and seeping into homes owners had thought would never flood.

Like most in this carefree place, Derek Epperly was not too worried about Wilma when he went to bed Sunday night. Officials said nine out of 10 residents in the Keys stayed put, despite a mandatory evacuation order.

Coastal areas picking up the pieces — again Hurricane Wilma kills 10, leaves 3.2 million without power

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FORT LAUDERDALE, Florida (CNN) — From Cancun to Key West and Marco Island to Miami, people are mopping up water and sweeping up debris in the aftermath of Hurricane Wilma, which is now churning in the Atlantic.

The deaths of at least 10 people — four in Mexico and six in Florida — were being blamed on the storm. At least 3.2 million homes and businesses in Florida were without power Tuesday, and Florida Power and Light said it could take a month before service is fully restored to all areas.

The acting director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, David Paulison, described the damage in the Sunshine State as “pretty extensive from the west coast all the way across to the east coast.”

NEW YORK (CNN/Money) – Hurricane Wilma pounded Florida’s most developed region, stretching from Miami to West Palm Beach, which could turn it into one of the most costly storms in U.S. history.

AIR Worldwide, a firm that does catastrophe modeling for the insurance industry, estimated early Monday afternoon that insured losses from Wilma could come in between $6 billion and $9 billion. If that’s correct, it would put losses behind only Hurricane Katrina earlier this year and Hurricane Andrew in 1992 in terms of insured losses.

“The largest driver of losses will be the concentration of properties on Florida’s east coast between West Palm Beach and Miami,” said a statement from Jayanta Guin, AIR’s vice president of modeling. The firm estimates that there is more than $500 billion worth of insured properties in Miami-Dade and Broward counties alone.

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) – Floridians already were waiting in long lines for gasoline at sunrise Wednesday as they voiced frustration at the slow arrival of relief following the destruction of Hurricane Wilma.

Police watched over the few gas stations that were open as a precaution in case motorists’ tempers flared while they waited for hours to buy fuel.

“I’m usually awake by this hour, but I need gas for my generator so I can go to work and make some money,” said Hector Vasquez, 36, who repairs windows. “This shouldn’t be this difficult.”

(CNN) — Mexican authorities were still assessing the damage from Hurricane Wilma as they worked to get aid to the storm-ravaged Yucatan Peninsula, but the country’s tourism minister said the region stands to lose hundreds of millions of dollars.

The storm hovered over the coastal paradise for days, flooding resort hotels and reducing stores and businesses to heaps of twisted metal.

Tourism Secretary Rodolfo Elizondo estimated the area would lose $800 million in tourism revenue between now and December.

PLANTATION, Florida (AP) — A week after Hurricane Wilma, more than 1 million Florida homes are still without power and many doctors’ offices remain closed, leaving hospitals swamped as the only source of medical care in some communities.

“You can’t get any regular doctors on the phone. You can’t get anything filled,” said Tim Swett, 41. He waited five hours at one emergency room and finally left without help for a back problem he had aggravated while cleaning up his mother’s yard.

It wasn’t until he tried another hospital, where disaster teams were set up in tents to handle minor injuries, that he saw a doctor.